Rise of the Uvundo
by kora22
Summary: When Simba hears about a legend tied to a desert, he can't wait to check it out. He and his friends soon discover that something stinks about this adventure... Literally. They also meet a rather strange cub...
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Looks like I was able to put up this story a little early. Are you ready for this one? I know I am. I've been looking forward to writing it. It's based off a horror movie I saw. Anyone who can guess what movie it is wins a grand prize of absolutely nothing! Anyway, here we go.**

* * *

**Chapter 1: Terror**

"We're lost, aren't we?" a light gold cub asked as he walked next to his parents in the middle of a very secluded area. The sun was hot, and the ground was more sandy. There weren't many plants growing and the ones that had grown looked like they were dead from lack of rain.

"No, of course we aren't." the lioness with light brown fur answered, not wanting to worry her son. "Right, dear?" She looked to the gold lion walking next to her.

"Yeah, we'll be fine." he assured his son.

"I'm really thirsty..." the cub said in a hoarse voice. "And my legs hurt."

His father stopped and looked at his son and mate. "You two wait here and take a break." he told them. "I'll walk ahead a bit and see if there's any water."

The cub collapsed to the ground, tired from having to walk in the heat for hours. "Okay..." he said as he shut his eyes to rest.

"I'll be back." he said before giving his mate a kiss. He then began walking farther into the desert.

The lioness looked down at her sleeping cub. "It's okay." she whispered. "We'll get out of this place." She looked back up to see how far her mate was. She was shocked to see he was nowhere in sight. "Where'd he go?" she asked herself. He couldn't have gotten that far in the short amount of time she looked away. She noticed a small group of bushes not far from where she and her cub were. They seemed out of place. She looked back at her cub and figured it would be okay to leve him there for a minute while she went over there, after all, there wasn't anything in this place that could hurt him, it seemed like there was no life within miles. She made her way over to the the bushes. As she got closer, she started to get a bad feeling as to what she would find over there. When she reached the bushes, she looked behind them. She screamed at what she saw. It was a grisly sight. On the ground was her mate. He was dead. He had been torn completely in half. After a moment, an awful stench filled the air. It smelled like a thousand rotting zebra carcasses, but worse. She turned around and a terrifying figure stood before her.

The cub had woken up after hearing his mother scream. "Mom?" he said as his head shot up. He looked around before spotting his mother not far away from where he was. He saw his mother facing something. It looked like a lion, but it appeared to have some sort of cloak covering it's body. He stood up and ran in the direction of the figure and his mother. As the cub got closer, an overpowering smell took over. He gagged when he caught the stench.

"Get back!" his mother yelled to him. "Run! Don't worry about me!"

"But mom, I-" the cub tried to protest, but was cut off by his mother.

"Don't argue, just go!" she shouted.

The cub was terrified. He decided it was best to listen to his mother. He turned around and started running. He looked back to his mother. He saw the creature raise a paw, revealing very long, extremely sharp claws. They glinted as if they were made of metal. He watched in horror as it swiped at the lioness, easily cutting her in half. Any attempt to defend herself would have been useless. Suddenly the cub saw the creature disappear. He turned his head around and came to a complete halt when he noticed the creature had appeared in front of him. The stench from before had also come back.

This creature didn't have a face. At least you couldn't see it because the hood on the cloak obscured it. It's long, metallic claws were easily visible. The creature began advancing toward the cub.

"P-please don't h-hurt me..." he said as tears streamed down his face and he backed away from the monster.

The creature didn't say a word, it just continued to walk towards the cub.

As he was backing up, the cub tripped over a rock. He fell flat on his back. He looked up and noticed the creature was standing right over him. The cub closed his eyes as the creature raised it's razor-sharp claws and brought them down directly at him.

* * *

"Hey, guys!" Simba yelled to his friends as he walked into the den. It had been a few weeks since the incident with Sora. Simba was finally able to walk on his leg again, since it healed a bit faster than expected.

"What's got you so excited?" Tora asked as Simba walked up to them.

"I met this great girl down at the water hole." he said. "I think she really likes me."

"What!?" Nala exclaimed.

"Calm down." Simba laughed. "I'm kidding."

Nala walked over to him and pushed him over. "Jerk." she said in fake anger.

"Okay." Sora said. "What's the real reason you're so excited?"

"I overheard some cubs talking about this desert that they heard about." he told his friends.

"Oooh... A desert." Kora said. "What's so exciting about that?"

"Apparently, there's some legend about it. I didn't really hear that part, but apparently, it's really creepy." Simba said.

"Let me guess." Kora said to him. "Now you want us to go check it out, which will result in it costing our lives or almost costing our lives?"

"Yeah, pretty much." Simba said. "So, who wants to go?"

"We don't even know what to look for." Nala said.

"I'm sure we'll know when we find it." Simba told her. "Come on, we have to check it out!"

"Fine." Nala said.

"I guess I'm in too." Tora told him.

"I have nothing to do, so why not?" Sora added.

They all looked at Kora.

"Ugh... Alright, I'll go." he said. "But I know I won't like it."

"How far is it anyway?" Nala asked.

"I think they said about a day." Simba told them.

"Our parents will realize we're missing." Nala said.

"I ran into Kulaani on the way here." Simba said. "He said he'd cover for us."

"So is it just us five?" Tora asked.

"I guess." Simba answered. "Mheetu doesn't want to go, I saw him already. Angani called me an annoying little pest and threw a rock at me when I snuck up on her and Mkali, so I'm guessing they won't."

"Alright then, let's head out." Tora said.

The cubs walked down Pride Rock. Simba was leading them.

"It's this way." he said. They managed to get away from Pride Rock without any adults seeing them leave. It was still morning, so they figured they would reach their destination sometime early in the morning. Simba was most eager to get there. He knew something was in that desert and he couldn't wait to see what it was.

* * *

**A/N: So, did you like this chapter? Some horror, a little comedy... Well, feel free to leave a review. Next update will be soon. See ya then! **


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Ready for a new chapter? A character from another author on this site will be making an appearance. Used with permission, of course. I'll put that again at the end of the chapter when we see who he is.**

**snheetah: Freddy's a good guess, but that's not it. The creature is just as scary though. Hope you enjoy the chapter!**

* * *

**Chapter 2: Prince Charming**

The cubs had been walking for many hours. They were tired, but they didn't want to stop until they got there. They noticed the sun rising in the sky ahead of them.

"We should be almost there..." Simba panted. "The sun's coming up, it can't be far."

"I hope so." Sora said. "I'm really bored."

As they continued walking, they felt the ground change beneath their paws. They looked down and saw they were now standing on sand.

"Looks like we made it." Nala said. "Now, what?"

"We explore." Simba said. "That's what. I know that there's something here and we're going to find it."

"It better not be something that will want to kill us." Kora said as they continued walking. "Though, knowing our luck. it probably is..."

"Oh, please." Simba said. "Even if it is, I'm sure it's nothing we can't handle."

"Besides," Sora said, "we may not even find anything. It doesn't look like there's life for mi-Ahhhh!" Sora was cut of when he and the others suddenly started falling. They had stepped on a pitfall and hit the bottom with a thud.

"Ow..." Kora groaned as he sat up.

"What the heck was that!?" Tora exclaimed. "How did someone manage to dig a hole in the desert?"

"Well, we weren't that far in." Nala said. "So there is probably only a small layer of sand to dig through."

They all suddenly heard a voice come from above them.

"Hah! I got y- Hey, you're not who I'm looking for."

They looked up and saw the voice belonged to a male cub. He had light brown fur and blue eyes.

"But I did manage to catch two cute girls... And you're pretty hot too." he said, looking at Simba.

"Um... Thanks?" Simba responded.

"Can you just get us out of here?" Nala asked.

"Alright..." the cub said as he reached a paw down. The pit wasn't too deep, so he was able to just reach down and pull them all out. Once they were all out, the cub turned to Nala. "So, do I get a kiss for helping you?"

"Back off." Nala said as she stepped away from him. "Are you some sort of weirdo?"

"Yes." the cub replied. "I get called weird a lot."

"Of course you do." Nala said.

"Could you at least tell us who you are?" Simba asked.

"Oh, sorry." the cub said. "I'm Haiba. I'm the prince of my pride."

"And where exactly is your pride?" Simba asked.

"I can't disclose that information." Haiba answered. He looked back at Nala. "But if you want to come live with me-"

"Hey, buddy." Simba said. "Watch it. She's with me."

"Doesn't mean she can't have another boyfriend." Haiba said. "I had three girlfriends... and a boyfriend at one time, but that's a long story."

"I don't think I want to hear it anyway." Nala told him.

"Anyway, where are you guys from?" Haiba asked.

"The Pridelands." Simba answered. "I also happen to be a prince."

"Oh, you must be Prince Simba." Haiba said. "I've heard about you before."

"How?" Simba asked.

"I know a lot." Haiba said. "Like I know he's Sora." He pointed a claw. "Your father was ruthless."

"Okay, this is creepy." Tora said.

"So, what brings you all the way here?" Haiba asked. "This is quite a ways from the Pridelands."

"We heard something about a legend surrounding this desert." Simba said. "Do you know anything about it?"

"I know exactly what legend you're talking about." he answered. "Come on, I made a little temporary home out here, it's not far. I'll tell you about it when we get there... If it doesn't find us first.

"It?" Kora asked.

"Yes." Haiba answered. "I'll tell you more later, let's get back to my place first. It gets really hot out during the day, sorry if I'm the cause of that."

Nala and Tora just rolled their eyes.

"Let's just go." Tora said.

"You seem a little fiery. I like that." he told Tora. Tora just ignored him as they started walking.

"Hm..." Simba said as he and Nala walked together behind Haiba.

"What is it, Simba?" she asked.

"Haiba..." he said.

"Yeah, what about him?" she asked.

"It seems like I know him..." Simba said, looking at the cub in front of him.

"I think it would be pretty obvious if we met him before." Nala said. "I can assure you we haven't."

"Yeah, you're right." Simba said. "It just seemed like I've seen him."

"Heh, I couldn't imagine living with him in the Pridelands." Nala said. "I don't think I could handle it."

"Yeah, he would get anoying after awhile." Simba said, making sure Haiba didn't hear him.

"Hey, do you smell that?" Nala asked quietly.

Simba sniffed the air. "No." he answered. "What is it?"

Nala noticed the smell was gone now. "I thought a smelled something rotting." she said. "It's gone now."

"I'm sure it's nothing." he told her. "Just a dead antelope or something."

"Yeah..." Nala said, now feeling uncomfortable. "I'm sure that's it."

* * *

**A/N: Hm... Haiba seems to be getting on Tora and Nala's nerves, oh well, they have to deal with it. Haiba is not my character and is used with permission from ThatPersonYouMightKnow. See you for the next update!**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Not much to say this time. Let's see what happens next. Enjoy the chapter!**

**the-mysterious-other: Simba thinking Haiba looks familiar was just a little reference to ThatPersonYouMightKnow's stories. Glad you liked the chapter!**

**Chika135: Haiba's personality makes everyone laugh. It's the best thing about him. Hope you like the chapter!**

**anonymous13: Glad you like it so far. I can't think of where you got that quote from, but it sounds familiar...**

**ThatPersonYouMightKnow: If he goes on any more adventures with them, Nala would really have to learn to tolerate him. Though he's pretty likeable anyway. Hope you like the chapter!**

* * *

**Chapter 3: The Ghost**

"Well, here we are." Haiba said as he and the others stood in front of a stucture that was built from stones. It wasn't very tall, just big enough for a cub to get into.

"Did you make that?" Nala asked.

"Yeah." Haiba answered. "It was the only way I was going to have shelter out here. I only made it tall enough for me so it can't get inside. Luckily there's a lot of space inside, so we should be able to squeeze in there, which isn't a bad thing, especially if I'm next to you." He looked at Nala.

"Let's just go in." Tora said. "It's getting hot out."

"Okay, follow me." Haiba said as he walked through a gap in the rocks. The cubs followed him in. Inside, there was actually quite a bit of room. It was cooler inside and there were small beams of light coming through some parts of the walls.

"Nice." Simba said. "Now, can you tell us about the legend?"

"A little eager?" Haiba asked. "Sit down... Or lay down, then you won't hit your head." All the cubs picked a spot and Haiba looked around at them. "Comfortable?" he asked. "Alright, there is a legend surrounding this desert. It's the legend of the Uvundo. I've never seen it myself, but I've heard about it many times."

"The Uvundo?" Tora asked. "That doesn't sound that bad."

"Oh, but it is." Haiba said. "The Uvundo is a terrible creature. It wears a black cloak and has long, metal claws. The sure sign that it is near is the horrible stench that fills the air."

Nala immediately remembered what she had smelled earlier. "Uh, exactly what does it smell like?" She asked.

"Like rotting carcasses." Haiba answered. "Just a lot worse."

"What happens if it finds you?" Tora asked. "What happens?"

"When it finds it's next victims, it won't show itself right away." Haiba told her. "But once it does find a victim, they're dead."

Now, Nala was worried. Was that the Uvundo she had smelled earlier? There was no way it was a dead animal, there wasn't anything living within miles of this place.

"There's no way to stop it," Haiba added, "at least not that I've heard."

"So basically, if this thing finds us, we're screwed." Kora said.

"Yep." Haiba told him. "He'll kill you quickly though... Maybe."

"Great..." Kora sighed. "Well, we know what it is now. We should be going."

"Not so fast." Simba said. "We aren't leaving yet. We're going to explore this legend a little more." He looked back at Haiba. "Where has the Uvundo been seen?"

"It appears anywhere in the desert." he said. "You can't find it, it finds you."

"This is fascinating and all," Kora said, "but I really need some water."

"There's a small water hole not far from here." Haiba told him. "Just walk outside and it's just behind my little fort. It's the only water for miles."

"You want me to go out there by myself!?" Kora exclaimed. "What if the Uvundo shows up?"

"I've been out here for days, I've yet to see it." Haiba told him.

"I'll go with you." Tora said. "We'll be right back." The two siblings then walked out.

* * *

"Ah, that's better." Kora said as he brought his head up from the water. "Let's get back before that thing shows up."

"You don't really believe Haiba do you?" Tora asked. "He seems a little...weird..."

"How?" Kora asked.

"You haven't noti- Hey, what's that?" Tora said, pointing to the other side of the water.

Kora looked to where his sister was pointing. "I think it's... a cub?"

"Why would another cub be all the way out here?" Tora asked.

"Well, we did find Haiba." Kora said.

"True." she replied. "Maybe he needs help. Let's go see."

"Alright." Kora said. The two cubs began to make their way over to the cub. As they got closer, they began to feel uneasy, but they continued in case the cub was really in trouble. When they were about fifteen feet away, they noticed something horrifying. This cub was covered head to tail in blood. His eyes were vacant, all that was visible were the whites of his eyes. They saw that he was nearly cut in half, just a little bit of skin holding his body together. He turned his head and looked and Kora and his sister. He started approaching them.

"We got to get out of here." Kora whispered.

"I can't move." Tora said. It was as if this thing was keeping her locked in place.

The gory looking cub stood directly in front of Kora. Their eyes were locked onto each other. The cub opened it's mouth and spoke in a raspy voice.

"Don't... Stay... Here..." the cub said. "He's... Already... Seen you..."

"W-what?" Kora asked as he shook.

The cub didn't say anything else, he just faded away.

Tora and her brother found they could move again.

"We need to warn the others." Tora said. "This has to have something to do with the Uvundo."

"I thought you didn't think it was true?" Kora asked.

"When a dead cub looks you in the eye and says something like that, I'm pretty sure you should take it seriously." Tora told him.

"Right..." Kora said. "Let's hurry." They ran as fast as they could back to their friends.

* * *

"Would you please move over." Nala said, pushing Haiba away from her. "I happen to like my personal space."

"Fine." Haiba said. "I'll grow on you eventually."

"You know, I'm right here." Simba said. He was really getting annoyed with Haiba flirting with Nala.

"Do you feel left out?" Haiba asked. "You're hot too. I wouldn't mind-"

"Hey!" Kora said as he and his sister ran inside. "We need to leave. NOW!"

"Why?" Sora asked. "We haven't been here that long."

Tora told them about the cub she and Kora had run into.

"He was cut in half?" Simba asked.

"Well, almost." Tora said. "He was barely being held together."

"Did he say anything?" Nala asked.

"He said, 'He's already seen you.'" Tora told them.

"Well, that's not good." Haiba said.

"No, really?" Kora said sarcastically. "I say we leave now and-" Kora stopped when a horrible smell suddenly filled the air.

"Oh, no..." Nala said. "It's the-" She wasn't able to finish before a large set of metal claws crashed through one of the walls.

* * *

**A/N: Looks like the cubs have some company now, and it's not the good kind. How can they possibly get out of this? Who knows! See ya next time!**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: I got two chapters for you today. Hope you like them!**

**anonymous13: It wouldn't be Haiba without the flirting, now would it? The cub's ghost is connected to the movie this is based off of. The ghost of a child shows up periodically in the movie, though the characters never see it like in this.**

**snheetah: There's nothing up with Haiba. He's just weird. The ghost may have warned them, but it looks like it's too late. Enjoy the chapters!**

**the-mysterious-other: I think anyone would have dragged their friends out, but remember, this thing is not one to miss it's targets...**

* * *

**Chapter 4: Poor Excuse**

"Run!" Simba yelled as he bolted out of the shelter. The others followed close behind him. The Uvundo had no problem knocking down one of the walls to get to the cubs. It watched as they ran away. It didn't move or make a sound. It just watched. It suddenly vanished into thin air. Now the cubs knew they were the creatures targets, which meant it wouldn't stop until it succeeded.

* * *

"I... think... we... lost it." Kora panted as he and the others slowed to a walk. Now, they were far into the desert; farther than they had planned on going. It was now the hottest part of the day.

"I'm not so sure about that." Haiba said. "The Uvundo will usually kill it's victims as soon as possible, but it has been known to toy with them first."

"There has to be a way to stop it." Simba said. "Nothing is invincible."

"Maybe." Haiba said. "I've never heard of a way to defeat it, but that doesn't mean there isn't one."

"Can't we just go home?" Kora asked. "We'd be safe there."

"Haven't you been listening?" Haiba asked Kora. "Once the Uvundo finds a victim, it makes sure it succeeds in killing them. So, if we try to leave, it will just kill us before we have the chance."

"Speaking of home," Simba said, "I wonder if Kulaani was able to cover for us..."

* * *

"Where did you say they were, Kulaani?" Mufasa asked the cub in front of him.

"I told you, we're playing a really intense game of hide and seek." Kulaani answered. "You can't come out until you're found, even if that means staying out all night."

"That seems a bit... Exaggerated." Zazu said as he sat on the kings back.

"Exactly." Kulaani said. "It's a test of... uh... Endurance... Yeah! That's it! It's to see how dedicated you are to winning."

"Hm..." the king said as he looked down at the cub, who had a cheesy smile on his face. "When you 'find' Simba, tell him I need to talk to him."

"Yes, sir." Kulaani said.

Mufasa and Zazu watched Kulaani walk back down Pride Rock.

"Sire, you don't really believe that, do you?" Zazu asked.

"Of course not, Zazu." The king replied. "Those cubs are up to something, and something tells me they left the Pridelands. Zazu, where do you think they went?"

"Hm..." Zazu said as he thought. "There's a desert not too far away, but they wouldn't go there. Far too warm. Maybe the jungle?"

"Zazu, you stay here and keep an eye on things." Mufasa told him. "I'm going to go see if they're there."

"Very well." Zazu answered. "Just be certain to stay safe."

"I'll be fine, Zazu." Mufasa said. He then left to go find the cubs.

* * *

"Well, we need to do something." Sora said. "If we can't run from this thing, then we'll have to fight it."

"How?" Kora asked. "Did you see the claws on that thing? I don't think these" he held up his claws, "are going to do anything."

"Well, first, we'll need some bait." Haiba said. "Preferrably someone weak and helpless." He looked at Kora.

"Hey! I'm not- Ah, who am I kidding?" Kora said. "Whatever, if this plan fails, I'll be slaughtered anyway."

"Okay, the rest of us will wait and attack this thing." Haiba said. "Maybe it's weakness is that cloak. If we can get it off, maybe the sunlight will make it burst into flames or something... Or at least make it more vulnerable."

"Well, it's better than anything I can think of." Tora said.

"Yeah me too." Simba added.

"Alright, we'll need to surprise it." Haiba told them. "We'll have to hide in the few dead bushes that are around here... I'll hide with Nala."

"How about no." Nala said. "I'll be with Simba."

"Fine, how about Tor-"

"Nope." Tora cut him off.

"Okay, I'll just hide with Sora then." Haiba said. "Let's hurry, it won't be long until it shows up again."

"What do I do?" Kora asked.

"Just stand there." Haiba said. "When the Uvundo shows up to rip your guts out, we'll attack it."

"Alright..." Kora said uneasily.

"Okay, let's hide." Haiba said as they all split up and hid.

Kora just sat in the open and mumbled to himself. "How do we always get into these situations?"

* * *

A few hours had passed and nothing had happened. Kora just sat there, hot and thirsty.

"Ugh..." he said. "At least it hasn't tried to kill me yet."

The other cubs were now bored. They just sat in the bushes, waiting.

"Hey." Haiba said to Sora.

"What?" Sora asked.

"Your fur is really soft." Haiba told him. "Your girlfriend must really like to cuddle with you."

"I don't have a girlfriend." Sora replied.

"Oh, so you're available?" Haiba asked. "I wouldn't mind dating you."

"Uh, no thanks." Sora said.

"Alright, but I'm always here." Haiba said.

"Good to know... I guess..." Sora said. He suddenly caught the scent of the Uvundo. "I think it's here..."

They looked towards Kora, who was looking right at the Uvundo.

The Uvundo's claws glistened in the sunlight as it rose them.

"HELP!" Kora yelled as loud as he could. The other cubs jumped out of their hiding spots and ran directly at the creature.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5: The Escape Attempt**

"I got him!" Haiba yelled as he jumped on the Uvundo's back. Tora had pulled her brother away from the creature before it could do anything. The Uvundo easily threw Haiba of it's back and it tuned and faced him.

"Uh... A little help?" Haiba said as he stared at the monster in front of him. The smell of the creature was now stronger than ever.

Simba jumped at the Uvundo. He landed on it's back and pulled it's hood off. What they saw wasn't what they were expecting. The Uvundo was a lion, but it was a skeleton. Dried blood was clearly visible on it's white face. It's eye sockets were empty and it had bit's of fur on it's head, like it once had a mane.

Simba struck it in the head with his claws. The Uvundo responded by violently tossing Simba off and to the ground. Haiba quickly stood up.

"Split up!" he yelled. "It can't get all of us!" The cubs quickly scattered in different directions. The Uvundo stood there, as if trying to decide which one to go after. It then quickly vanished once again.

* * *

"Why does this always happen to us?" Nala asked as she and Simba ran through the desert.

"I don't know." Simba said. "I guess we're just trouble prone."

"How are we going to get out of this?" Nala asked. "That thing is obviously unstoppable."

"Like I said before, nothing's invincible." Simba reminded her. "It has a weakness, we just need to figure it out."

"Maybe getting a bath is it's weakness." Nala said. "It clearly needs one."

"Wait..." Simba said as he stopped running. "It's claws!"

"What about them?" Nala asked.

"Don't you see?" Simba asked. "Without it's claws, it would be powerless. It's claws has to be it's weakness. Without them, it would be easy to defeat."

"Okay." Nala said. "But how do we even damage it's claws? They're made of metal."

"Well, there has to be a way." Simba said. "We need to get back together with the others and tell them."

"How do we find them?" Nala asked. "We all scattered to get away from that thing."

"Well, I followed you." a voice suddenly said from behind them. It was Haiba.

"I thought you said split up?" Nala said. "Why'd you follow us?"

"Maybe you followed yourselves." Haiba said. "Maybe this isn't real. I'm not, your not, he's-"

"Focus!" Simba shouted. "Now isn't the time to fool around. There's a psychotic monster trying to kill us!"

"Sorry." Haiba said. "Anyway, I do like your idea. Maybe it is the claws we need to take care of. And I have just the way to do that."

"You do?" Nala asked.

"Yep," Haiba answered, "but we need to find the others first."

"Uh, oh..." Simba said as he sniffed the air. "I smell it."

"Well, let's hurry and get out of here." Nala said.

"They turned to run, but saw the one thing they didn't want to in their path.

* * *

"Okay... I'm tired." Sora said as he collapsed to the ground.

"Yeah, let's rest a minute." Tora said before sitting down.

"Are you nuts!?" Kora exclaimed. "That thing is after us and you want to stop moving."

"I wonder where Simba, Nala, and Haiba are." Tora said.

"I saw them run in the opposite direction of us." Sora told her.

"Well, we didn't do a very good job splitting up." Kora said. "Half of us went this way and half the other way."

"Yes, but who did it follow?" Tora asked.

Kora looked around to see where they were, but he froze when he looked behind his sister.

"Uh... Let's go back the way we came." Kora said.

"Why?" Sora asked.

Kora pointed in the direction behind Tora. Sora and his sister turned their heads and saw a dark figure standing out in the distance.

"Oh, no." Tora said.

"Let's get out of here!" Sora exclaimed as he got up and bolted back to where they had come from.

"Hey! Wait for us!" Kora yelled as he and Tora ran after him.

Out where they saw the figure, it was in fact the Uvundo. What they didn't see was the fresh blood that dripped from it's metal claws.

* * *

**A/N: Uh, oh... Are Simba, Nala and Haiba alright? How could they be, the Uvundo has blood dripping from it's claws. If it's not their blood, who's is it? You don't get to see until the next chapter. Hope you liked these two chapters. Enjoy the cliffhanger. See ya next time!**

**P.S. Happy Super Bowl Sunday! Not sure how many of you are football fans, but even if you aren't, you can still watch the game for the commercials. Go Ravens. (At least for today since my team didn't even make the palyoffs.)**


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: So, whose blood was it? Did one of the cubs get caught by the Uvundo? Read on to find out!**

**snheetah: Good to see I can keep you interested. Hope you like this chapter.**

**ThatPersonYouMightKnow: Who knows, it could be the blood of anything. I guess you need to read to see. Enjoy the chapter!**

**the-mysterious-other: The movie this is based off is not well known, I just came across it on tv once. I'll say what it is at the end, so you'll find out.**

* * *

**Chapter 6: The Plan**

"I'm fine!" Haiba exclaimed as Simba carried him on his back. "It's just a flesh wound!"

"Flesh wound?" Nala asked. "That thing nearly cut your paw off!" She looked at Haiba's paw, which had been violently slashed. "You're just lucky I was able to pull you out of the way before it killed you."

"Ah, this is nothing." Haiba told her. "I suffered worse on a date once. I didn't know she had such a short temper. What was her name again? Ang-something... I can't remember. Last I heard, she had a girlfriend."

"I still don't get it." Simba said. "Why does that thing keep letting us get away?"

"It won't much longer." Haiba said. "It'll have us dead by midnight. It never let's it's victims last more than a day... Unless we can stop it of course... Hey, I'm starting to feel a little dizzy."

"It's probably all that blood you're losing." Nala said. "Simba, put him down for a minute." Simba did as she said and put Haiba down. Nala then started putting pressure on Haiba's wound.

"Hey, this is kinda romantic." Haiba said. "Your paws on mine."

"Yeah," Nala said, "because the feeling of your blood just fills me with joy." She applied pressure for several minutes until she felt the bleeding slowing down. She lifted her paws and looked at his wound. The bleeding had slowed down enough so he wasn't in danger... At least for now. "There. Just be careful not to make it start bleeding again."

"I'll be fine." he said. He looked in the direction they were heading and saw three figures coming towards them. "Who's that?"

Simba and Nala looked to where he was looking.

"I think it's Tora and her brothers." Simba said.

"At least they're okay." Nala said. "Let's get over to them."

Simba picked Haiba back up and the three cubs started toward their friends.

* * *

"We finally found you." Tora said as she and her brothers approached their friends. She noticed Haiba's blood-soaked paw. "What happened to him?"

"Just a little incident with the Uvundo." Haiba said. "I'm fine, though."

"We saw it not to long ago." Sora said. "It just looked at us, like it has been."

"Well, we only have until midnight, apparently." Simba said. "The Uvundo will kill us by then."

"Great." Kora said. "How do we stop it by then?"

"It's claws." Nala said.

"What about them?" Sora asked.

"They're what it uses to attack." Nala said. "Without them, it would be easy to defeat."

"Okay..." Kora said. "And how do you propose we disable it's claws?"

"Well," Haiba began. "If we can get it to get it's claws stuck in something, like a rock or a tree, then we can attack it."

"We'll need someone to lure it to us." Haiba said.

"Well, don't look at me." Kora said. "I already played the role of live bait today and I have no interest in doing it again."

"I'll just do it." Haiba said. "I'm already hurt, so it'll definately come for me."

"Where are we going to lure it to?" Simba asked.

"I remember seeing a huge boulder at the edge of the desert when I first arrived." Haiba said. "It would be the perfect thing to get it's claws stuck into."

"So, after it's stuck we attack it?" Tora asked.

"Exactly." Haiba said. "Do anything you can to it. Especially the claws; damage them until they're useless."

"Then we can leave." Simba said.

"Let's get it done." Nala said. "Our lives depend on it."

* * *

Haiba had directed them to the part of the desert where he had come in.

"There's the boulder." he said, pointing a claw ahead of them. "Just put me down in front of it and wait." He looked at Nala. "How about a kiss in case I'm slaughtered."

Nala just looked at him.

"Okay, fine." Haiba said. "At least a hug?"

"Alright..." Nala said, hoping it would get him to leave her alone for awhile. She went over to him and gave him a hug. "Uh... Haiba, you can let go now."

"Just a little longer. " he responded.

"Oh, let go!" Nala said, pulling herself away from him.

They walked over to the boulder and Simba set Haiba down.

"Alright," Haiba said, "just like before, when it shows up, attack it, but wait until it's claws get trapped."

"Okay." Simba said. "This will probably be our last chance." He looked out to the horizon and saw the sun going down. It was only a matter of time before the Uvundo came back, and something told them that next time, it wouldn't mess around.

* * *

**A/N: There you go, Chapter Six. Will their plan work? Find out next time! Feel free to leave a review. See ya!**


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: Chapter 7! Officially my longest story yet! Let's see if they can stop the Uvundo before it's too late. I've really been on a roll with these chapters, haven't I?**

**ThatPersonYouMightKnow: I figured this one would be longer, but hey, I think it made it better. I've enjoyed writing it. Enjoy the chapter!**

**the-mysterious-other: Glad you've liked it! Hope you like this chapter too!**

* * *

**Chapter 7: The Heart**

"Come on, you big, smelly monster!" Haiba shouted, trying to provoke the Uvundo. "Look at me! You already hurt me, come back and finish the job!" He looked around, but it didn't seem to be nearby... Until he caught it's smell. "Now, show yourself." Not a moment later, the creature was towering over him. Haiba backed up against the boulder.

The Uvundo looked down at the cub in front of him and began to raise his claws. The moon was now up and it's light made the creature's claws shine. The Uvundo quickly struck at Haiba, but he managed to move at the last second. He noticed that it had gotten it's claws stuck, just like they planned.

"Now!" Haiba yelled as the Uvundo struck at him with it's other paw, just missing him.

The other cubs ran at the Uvundo and started attacking it.

"Nala! Simba yelled. "You and Tora go for it's claws! We'll handle the rest of it."

"Got it." Nala said as she jumped on the leg that the Uvundo had gotten stuck. She tried striking it's claws with her own, but they were too strong. Then she had an idea.

The Uvundo was thrashing wildly, trying to shake the cubs off it. It kept slashing it's free claws at them in an attempt to kill them. Without warning, it suddenly let out a deafening screech.

"My ears are bleeding!" Kora yelled as he pushed his paws against his ears.

The Uvundo stopped screeching and stared directly at Nala. She had snapped the Uvundo's leg.

"How do you break a supernatural creature's leg?" Haiba asked.

"It's just a skeleton." Simba said. "It can't be th-"

"Uh... Guys?" Nala said as she backed away from the Uvundo, which was advancing towards her. "A little help, please?"The Uvundo had pulled it's claws out of the rock in rage. It didn't even seem to be in pain now.

"What do we do!?" Kora exclaimed. "This thing is unstoppable!"

"No, it's not!" Simba yelled as he jumped on the creature once again to save Nala. Before the Uvundo had time to react, Simba manged to get it's cloak of, fully revealing the skeletal figure. Simba slammed his paw through it's ribcage, tearing the thin layer of flesh that was on it's body. It did not bleed, but Simba felt something. It was the creatures heart. It seemed to be the only thing within it. Simba wasted no time in stabbing it's heart with his claws and tearing it out. He looked at the heart stuck to his claws. It was not red. It was black.

The creature once again screeched, but now, it appeared to be glowing. Simba jumped off it, still holding the heart and watched as it backed up and continued screeching. The glow got brighter and brighter until the cubs could no longer look at it. The brightness only lasted a few seconds before it subsided. The cubs looked back to where the creature was. It was gone.

"Where'd it go?" Sora asked.

"I think it was destroyed." Haiba said. "Simba pulled it's heart out. That must of been it's source of life."

"But was it even alive?" Tora asked.

"Well, it wasn't exactly a ghost." Haiba said. "It was just a monster."

"It was more than a monster." Kora said. "It was the king of monsters."

"Oh, well..." Simba said, dropping the black heart to the ground. "Hopefully it'll stay that way, then nobody will be killed by it again."

"Let's just leave before something else happens." Kora said.

"Just one problem." Sora said. "Do you even know which way the Pridelands are?"

"I do." Haiba said. "I can take you guys back there if you like."

"Okay." Simba said. "Can you walk yet?"

"Yeah." Haiba said. "It takes more than a slashed paw to keep me down. Come on, follow me." he said as he walked ahead of them. The cubs had a long walk ahead of them, but right now, they were just happy to make it out of the desert alive.

* * *

It had been hours since the cubs left the desert. The moon sat high in the sky, illuminating the entire desert. The desert was now empty of any animals, except for one pitch black lion with piercing green and red eyes that was casually walking through. He came across the heart of the Uvundo lying on the ground.

"This poor creature." the lion said. "I thought it was invincible, but I guess it can't be. Only I, Kivuli, am invincible." He continued looking at the heart as he was thinking. "Perhaps this can be of some use to me..."

Kivuli smiled evilly as he picked up the heart. "Some more help wouldn't hurt." He then stared up at the moon. "Darkness shall consume this world. I will be sure of it." He then vanished, along with the heart of the Uvundo.

* * *

**A/N: Whew, that was actually a tough chapter to write. I'll tell you what this is based off of now. The movie I got the idea from is called The Reeker. It's not the best movie in the world, but it was good enough. The monster and setting were the biggest things that I used from the movie. The movie is actually kind of confusing, you need to pay attention to get it. The one thing the movie failed to give was a way to kill the Reeker, which is what made this chapter hard to write. There will be one more chapter to wrap up this story, so I'll see you then!**


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: Time to wrap up this story and start working on the next. Enjoy.**

**the-mysterious-other: The cubs actually met Kivuli a couple stories back, but he let them go. Anyway, hope you like the chapter.**

**snheetah: The Uvundo was definately their toughest challenge yet. Though, Kivuli is till pretty shrouded in mystery. We don't know what he can really do. Enjoy the chapter.**

* * *

**Chapter 8: Back Home**

"Where could they have gone, Zazu?" Mufasa asked as he paced around the den. "They weren't in the jungle."

"Perhaps you should question that cub, Kulaani, again." Zazu said. "You know just as well as I do he wasn't telling the truth."

"You're right, Zazu." Mufasa said. "Can you bring him to me?"

"Right away, sire." Zazu said before flying out of the den.

* * *

"Wow," Simba said, "we're really making good time in getting back." They had walked all the previous night and through the whole day. "It looks like we'll make it before it gets dark." The sun was low in the sky, but they could now see Pride Rock ahead of them.

"Yep." Haiba said. "We'll be at Pride Rock soon... So, how many girls live in this pride, exactly?"

"Do you only think about girls?" Sora asked.

"No." Haiba replied. "I think about boys too... and trees, rocks, elephants, you get the idea."

After a short distance they came upon the water hole. There was still cubs hanging around, including Angani and Mkali.

"Hey, look." Angani said. "They're still alive. I didnt' thi-" she stopped when she saw Haiba. "You..." She suddenly ran at him and pinned him to the ground. "I told you that if I ever saw you again, I would tear your throat out!"

"Woah!" Nala exclaimed as she pulled Angani off him. "What's the problem?"

"That little weirdo used to be my boyfriend!: she exclaimed.

"I see you're with someone else now." Haiba said as he picked himself up off the ground.

"Yeah, I am." Angani said. "And she's a way better kisser than you were."

"I highly doubt that." Haiba said. "Anyway-"

"Thank the kings, you're back!" Kulaani interrupted as he ran towards them. "I don't think I could keep it up much longer."

"Keep what up much longer?" Zazu said as he joined the cubs. "The king and I suspected you were lying, Kulaani. Hide and seek, what a low effort attempt to cover up your activities."

"_Hide and seek?" _Simba said to Kulaani. "That's the best you could come up with!?"

"Your parents have been worried sick about you cubs." Zazu said. "You are sure to be punished. Now, come. They will all be relieved to see you cubs are alright."

"Aw, man..." Simba said as they followed Zazu toward Pride Rock.

* * *

"Sire, I've found the cubs." Zazu said as he led them inside.

Mufasa, Sarabi, Sarafina, Neema, and Adia all came to the den entrance.

"Simba." Mufasa said sternly as he looked down at his son.

"Where have you cubs been?" Sarafina asked.

Haiba looked at Nala. "Hey, is she your mom?" he asked, noticing the resemblance between the two.

"Yes." Nala answered.

"She's pretty." he said. Nala just rolled her eyes.

"And who's your charming friend?" Sarafina asked.

"I'm Haiba." he introduced himself. "Prince Haiba."

"Anyway... back to the original question." Sarabi said. "Where were you?"

"Uh... a desert." Simba answered.

"Simba, you know you are forbidden to leave the Pridelands." Mufasa said. "It's dangerous for cubs like you to go off on their own."

"We're alive aren't we?" Simba asked.

"Yes," Mufasa said, "but that doesn't mean you aren't in trouble. You're not allowed to leave the den for two weeks."

"Two weeks!?" Simba exclaimed.

"Simba, you constantly disobey me." Mufasa said. "You need to learn to listen."

"But I-"

"Simba, don't argue!" Sarabi told him.

Neema and Adia looked at Tora and her brothers.

"Would you say two weeks is acceptable, Adia?" Neema asked.

"Yes." Adia answered. "That seems fair."

"Whatever." Kora said. "I'll just sleep the whole time. I'm exausted."

"Nala-"

"Yeah, I know." Nala interrupted her mother. "Two weeks."

"Kulaani." Mufasa said. "You're grounded too."

"Okay..." Kulaani said as he walked to the back of the den.

"Well, I better be going." Haiba said. "I got to get home, my mother is probably worrying."

"Hope to see you again." Simba said. "You're kinda fun to hang out with."

"I'm sure we'll see each other again." Haiba said. "I may pop in once in a while to visit. My pride actually isn't far from here."

"Okay, see you around." Nala told him.

"Bye!" Haiba said before leaving the den.

"He's weird." Nala said, once Haiba was gone.

"Yeah," Simba said, "but it's a good weird."

"Alright." Sarabi said. "I think it's time for you cubs to go to sleep."

"But it's still light out." Simba said.

"Yes," Sarabi said, "but you're also grounded. Now, off to sleep."

"Fine..." Simba said. "Let's go, Nala."

Everyone was relieved the cubs were back and it wasn't long before they were all asleep.

* * *

As Haiba was walking home, he couldn't stop thinking about Simba and Nala.

"What is it about those two that seems so familiar?" he asked himself. "It just seems like that I might know them. Oh, well... I better get moving." He continued walking towards his home, happy to have made some new friends.

* * *

**A/N: Well, there you go. This one is finally wrapped up. You can expect the next either tomarrow or the day after. I'm planning it as I type this. See you all then!**


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